High Noon (1952) Exemplary black-and-white Western, unfolding largely in real time, with Gary Cooper standing alone as a weary marshal defending his town against a vengeful killer’s imminent arrival. Under Fred Zinnemann’s masterful direction, each scene counts and every camera angle tells a story.

Singin' in the Rain (1952) A joyous, ingenious musical, as effective as any anti-depressant, with Gene Kelly, Debbie Reynolds and Donald O’Connor witnessing the passing of silent movies. It boasts an array of wonderful songs and dance routines: Kelly’s title song sequence is peerless.

North by Northwest (1959) Hitchcock’s classic is almost criminally entertaining and straddles so many genres – comedy, romance, thriller, action. Cary Grant is dashing and suave even by his own standards. Two scenes – one involving a crop-dusting plane, the other at Mount Rushmore – are world-beaters.

A Bout de Souffle (1960) The film that ushered in the French New Wave, Jean-Luc Godard’s giddying breakthrough tipped its hat to American B-movies, while employing jump cuts and hand-held cameras. Jean-Paul Belmondo and Jean Seberg sparkle in the cool lead roles;it brims over with fun and inventiveness.

The Apartment (1960) In Billy Wilder’s delightful but caustic romantic comedy, ambitious Jack Lemmon hopes to climb the career ladder by letting his bosses use his flat for sex. Shirley Maclaine, a good-hearted elevator girl, sets him right. A brilliant satirical slap at America’s business ethos.

La Dolce Vita (1960) Fellini’s scurrilous satire attacked all he despised in Italy – the Catholic Church, decadence, corruption and celebrity culture – with brilliance and wit. Seen through the eyes of Marcello Mastroianni’s journalist, it’s not too rigorous to linger on the targets of its wrath – notably Anita Ekberg splashing in the Trevi fountain.

Battle Of Algiers (1965) Startlingly immediate re-staging of Algerian rebels’ attempts to fight back against French colonial forces in 1954. Director Gillo Pontecorvo uses actors, but his cinema verité shooting style lends it the force and urgency of a documentary. Riveting and tense, yet thoughtful.

The Conformist (1969) Jean-Louis Trintignant stars as a young man in Mussolini’s Italy. Abused as a child, he has a desperate need to belong. Psychologically intricate and strikingly beautiful: Fascist architecture never looked more alluring. Disturbing and provocative.

The Godfather (1972) A high point in American cinema, a sumptuous crime family saga that announces its greatness with a detailed opening wedding scene, complete with Mob deals behind closed doors. Francis Ford Coppola brilliantly chronicles the Corleones, with superb performances from Brando, Pacino and Duvall.

Chinatown (1974) In this brilliant, complex thriller, Roman Polanski egged on Jack Nicholson to his finest performance, as a private eye rooting out civic and personal corruption in 1930s Los Angeles. Beautifully shot and composed, with a downbeat ending that chimed with the time of its release.

Taxi Driver (1976) Martin Scorsese’s bleak, chilling vision of New York as hell, viewed through the eyes of a Vietnam veteran (Robert de Niro) who drives a cab and sees squalor and degradation all around him. A hugely influential work that demands to be seen.

Apocalypse Now (1979) Francis Ford Coppola’s war movie is part fever dream, part rambling journey upriver in Vietnam, all held together by dazzling set-piece scenes. Evoking the war’s horror and madness, it threatens to fall apart like its protagonist Captain Willard (Martin Sheen). Still,it’s unforgettable.

Schindler's List (1993) Steven Spielberg’s masterpiece does justice to Holocaust victims and to those who, like Liam Neeson’s Oskar Schindler, helped other Jews survive. Shot in black and white, it’s testament to Spielberg’s audacity in using unspeakable events to fashion a great work of art.

All About My Mother (1999) Pedro Almodóvar’s crowning work, a sly re-working of themes prevalent in Hollywood ‘women’s movies’ of the 40s and 50s. A single woman, grieving her son’s death, finds new purpose in life through new friendships with women. Humane, moving and outrageously funny.

In The Mood for Love (2000) In Wong Kar-Wai’s bewitching melodrama a man and woman in 1960s Hong Kong (Tony Leung, Maggie Cheung) are thrown together when they learn their respective spouses are having an affair. Ravishing to look at, sumptuous clothes and a swooning, melancholic air.

There Will Be Blood (2007) An angry, discordant film, with Daniel Day-Lewis as Plainview, a man made immensely rich by oil, at the cost of his humanity. It’s jolting and unsettling but has the power of myth – and director Paul Thomas Anderson’s mastery of his material is beyond doubt.